Thursday, September 12, 2013

Commentary: The Cost of Intervention, Via Baron & Rude's Nexus

Nexus is a being of great power. He dreams of mass murderers, then goes out and executes them. He is wanted throughout the galaxy for his executions.

His dreams compel him to Alpha C, Planet Darius. The planet's ruler, the Warlord, prepares his speech while his audience laments the non-elite, the inhabitants of The Flatlands, "the uneducated, avaricious, diseases-ridden pox." And then Nexus breaks through the doors...

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Down below, Nexus saves a young rebel boy from the violence breaking out at the Warlord's death.

Despite assassinating the Warlord, but he will not get involved in their civil war. Nexus agrees to take the boy's family with him to his homeworld, but no more. The rebels have a different idea, though...

The consequences of intervention, Nexus drawn down into war, war begetting war begetting war.

"I am in another war."

Then things spin out of control.

The entire planet at war. "The rebels have unexpected weapons. No clear end in sight. No clear end."

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Excerpted from Nexus 31, "Flatlands" written by Mike Baron, illustrated by Gerald Forton, published by First Comics (1987). Created by Baron & Steve Rude, available in Nexus Omnibus Volume 3 from Dark Horse (2013).